After Tamim Iqbal announced on Thursday that he will stand down as the captain of the Bangladesh one-day international team, there have been discussions surrounding who would lead the Tigers in this format ahead of two important tournaments this year: the Asia Cup, which will take place this month, and the World Cup, which will take place in October and November.
The One-Day International (ODI) Cricket Board of Bangladesh (BCB) is prepared to designate an ODI skipper on a long-term basis with the World Cup in mind. This is the current state of affairs.
Since Shakib Al Hasan is now the captain of both the Tigers’ Test and Twenty20 International teams, his name has been mentioned in the media as a potential contender for the position because of his extensive experience in the sport.
According to Nazmul Abedeen Fahim, a notable coach and adviser to many Bangladesh players including Shakib, if Bangladesh wants to perform well in the next days, there is no option to the champion all-rounder for this job.
“If it is just a matter of appointing a captain, then you may choose whomever you want to lead the team. However, if the objective is to put someone on the squad who is capable of managing the team properly and who can provide the greatest possible outcome for the team, then Shakib is the only option available. He is the finest option, and I do not believe there is any basis for drawing comparisons to anybody else. According to what Fahim said in front of the media the other day, “we have no other alternative other than handing the captaincy to Shakib in order for us to get good results.”
However, it is not yet known for certain whether or not Shakib would be willing to lead the ODI team in that capacity. And in that scenario, Liton Das, who captained Bangladesh in the home series against India the year before last and also in the series against Afghanistan that just came to an end, may be another possibility.
Even if Shakib does not choose to take on the position of captain, Fahim has instructed the board that they should make every effort to persuade him to do so for the sake of the overall success of the squad.
“If Shakib does not agree, then we can think about other options, but I think attempts should be made so that he agrees to take the captaincy,” he said. “I think we should make attempts so that he agrees to take the captaincy.”